Abstract
Ultrasonically irradiated aqueous solution of chondroitin sulfate C was fractionated by the gel filtration method using Sephadex G 200, and the content of glucuronic acid in each fraction was measured. Only one new peak arose from the depolymerized product after irradiation. This new peak did not shift with prolonged irradiation. From these facts, chondroitin sulfate C in an aqueous solution was suggested to have been depolymerized not gradually, but directly into the species of limited molecular weight by ultrasonic irradiation. From the result of gel filtration, Kav values of the original compound and the depolymerized product were found to be 0.08 and 0.24, respectively. The molecular weight estimated from the obtained Kav value was approximately equal to the limited molecular weight which was calculated by the authors' equation presented in the previous paper. The depolymerized product by ultrasonic irradiation can be an enzyme substrate against chondroitinase and chondro-6-sulfatase, like the original sample. It is supposed that the depolymerized product still maintains the characteristics of the original macromolecular compound.
